


Sunday

by digitalsoop



Category: Free!
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-27
Updated: 2013-10-27
Packaged: 2017-12-30 16:10:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1020722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/digitalsoop/pseuds/digitalsoop
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prompt!Fic</p>
<p>Makoto and Gou meet up for a run every Sunday. This Sunday they have some company...</p>
<p>Cross posted from Tumblr.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sunday

Makoto had struggled with his stamina in swimming for as long as he can remember. Gou had suggested he run more often, and when she caught the distressed look on his face she had laughed. “It’s not so bad. I’ll run with you, if you want.”

He was certainly less reluctant after the offer, and every Sunday following their agreement they meet up and run. He doesn’t enjoy the activity but he certainly enjoys the company; he discovers quickly that Gou loves to run, and because she pulls her bangs back into her ponytail he feels like he can see her face better than ever before. It turns out that her face turns a slightly different shade of pink than the color she takes on when she’s embarrassed, and he likes it because it makes her glow.

On a few occasions where his feet and ankles are too sore he rides his bike, and she sits on the back and goes along with him, and he enjoys the feeling of her against his back.

Today he’s meeting her at her house, and they’re running. He’s only been to her house once before, but he thinks it’s fair that he pays the fare for public transportation every so often.

The one time he had been to her house she had already been outside waiting for him, but today he doesn’t see her, so he has to carefully check each house to find the right one. When he rings the doorbell, he hears a male voice, and he realizes as soon as the door is opening that Rin is home, and he goes pale. Rin does not look pleased to see him.

"Tachibana."

"R-rin. You’re home for summer break?"

"Yeah."

"That’s… nice."

They stare at each other until Gou barrels to the door and pushes Rin out of the way. “I’m sorry Makoto, I’m almost ready!”

"It’s okay!" He smiles nervously as she leaves, because he’s alone with Rin again, and the stare he’s giving him isn’t quite as bored as it was before. He doesn’t know what to say, and so he swallows nervously and keeps trying to smile.

Finally, Rin speaks. “Ready for what?”

"We run together."

"Why don’t you run alone?"

"Well, I don’t really like it…"

"Why don’t you run with Nagisa?"

"He doesn’t really like to run either, remember?"

Rin pauses and looks down. “That’s right. So why run at all?”

"Um…" he’s relieved that he doesn’t have to answer because Gou is back with her running shoes on, her hair pulled away from her face, and her water bottle in hand. She bounces out the door and Makoto wants to run more than ever before. "Well, see you later, Rin."

"Hold on, I’ll go, too."

"Huh?" Gou and Makoto both yell in surprise, and though he badly wants to protest, Gou looks so happy he immediately loses the will to say anything. She smiles up at him, and he suddenly feels a little grateful for Rin’s intrusion.

Rin doesn’t say anything when he comes back outside. He only taps his toes on the ground and waits for them to start running, so he and Gou are left to set the pace. With Rin following after them, he can’t help but feeling a bit like stalked prey, and every time he chances a glance back at him, with a smile of course, Rin’s expression is severe.

He and Gou don’t normally speak when they run, but if they did Rin would have been able to easily overhear everything they said. When they stop for a break for Makoto’s sake, Gou praises him for making it farther than he ever has before. Rin crosses his arms.

"It’s still a pretty pathetic distance."

"Brother!" Gou scowls, and he has a feeling that it’s partly because she is also breathing heavily, and she’s taken it as a personal offense. "If you’re disappointed, you can run ahead and we’ll just catch up."

Rin looks up the road, but he doesn’t take her up on the offer, and continues to follow after them. As the run progresses, the distance between Makoto and Gou gets smaller; by the time they have slowed to a brisk walk, he’s almost forgotten Rin is there until, that is, Gou takes his hand and Rin begins to choke on his water.

They both quickly drop their hands, and he brushes off their concern with a wave of his hand. Makoto convinces himself he imagined the glare Rin gave him, and they return to the Matsuoka house without any further incidents.  

Gou is pink faced and smiling, her hands on her waist. “That was almost double what we ran last time. You were really amazing today, Makoto.”

He doesn’t tell her it was because he felt he was on the run from her brother, who is lurking in the doorway. “Thanks. I was thinking we could bike next Sunday—”

"Gou doesn’t have a bike."

They turn to look at Rin, who is scowling outright. Gou glances up at Makoto, before looking back at her brother. “I sit behind Makoto.”

"Is that safe?"

"Don’t you trust Makoto?" she grumbles. He looks frustrated but turns and walks inside their home. Makoto and Gou stand in silence, and he absently takes her hand in his.

"Want to walk for some ice cream?"  

She laughs. “Do I really look okay for that?”

"You look cute all the time." He blurts it out before he can stop himself, and Gou’s face flushes a deeper shade of pink, the one that he likes in a slightly different way than the glow she has when she runs. He can’t tell if he’s turned a darker shade of pink or not, and he’s grateful for that, because somehow he feels less anxious about walking somewhere hand in hand.

They get popsicles from the convenience store and walk until they find a grassy place out of the way so they can relax. “I’m sorry for the way my brother was acting. I really thought… I was hoping he would start being friendly again.”

Makoto smiles, because he doesn’t want to agree that Rin had made things a little miserable. “It’s alright. I still enjoyed running with you.”

"Yeah it was fun. I was a little worried when Rin started choking though," she laughs nervously. "I think it was because we were holding hands. I didn’t even notice, but I guess we do that a lot when we run, don’t we?"

He nods and looks across the grass as he finishes his popsicle. Gou is a little slower with hers, and he watches her for a moment until he realizes what he’s doing and looks away. Her cheeks are still glowing, and her baby hairs have turned into little curls around her face and at the back of her neck. He knows that the ice is going to turn her lips bright red.

He glances over again to find her absently licking her lips, which are definitely bright red, and twisting the empty popsicle stick between her fingers. She notices, and smiles brightly at him, and he feels like his entire body is buzzing. “Gou, I want to tell you something.”

She raises her eyebrows, her smile becoming a bit nervous. “Okay.”

"I—"He stops when he hears her phone ring, and she fumbles into the pocket of her shorts in confusion. Normally her mother doesn’t call, and he suspects that one of her friends has terrible timing until she shouts in surprise.

"What?"

"It’s Rin!" She looks hesitant to answer the call, but when she does she’s immediately interrogated. "I went to get ice cream. Yes, with Makoto. What? No, we weren’t doing anything. Why do you think we were  _about_  to?”

Makoto feels an ominous chill.  _How can he tell from that far away?_


End file.
